Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Feng Fei Fei, another Mandarin pop icon died. Many youngsters may not know her too well. Incidentally, my number one pop icon, Teresa Teng was of the same age. Both are now gone; very sad.

I don't speak Mandarin or write Chinese, but I am always a fan of Chinese songs. I don't fully understand the lyrics, but I still enjoy listening to all of them. My male pop idol is Fei Yi Ching. (Incidentally, the man sitting next to Fei Fei in the 3rd video below is Fei Yi Ching)

Theresa Teng and Feng Fei Fei had very special vocal resonance. I think there is no appropriate word to describe their special vocal excellence. For Theresa Teng I would say she had a sweet and beautiful voice. As for Feng Fei Fei, haunting and sexy.

The best way to "describe" is just to listen and enjoy their sweet renditions. Below, I have chosen five special songs by Fei Fei which are my favourites. For Theresa's please clik here:

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The China Post/ANN
Tuesday, Feb 14, 2012 President Ma Ying-jeou joined large swathes of Taiwan in mourning yesterday after the news that singer Feng Fei Fei had died.
Feng Fei Fei, literally meaning flying phoenix, died of lung cancer in Hong Kong on Jan 3 at age 59. She is survived by her only son.

Chiu Wan Kee, her husband and also a victim of lung cancer, died before her on June 16, 2009. She was cremated in Hong Kong and her remains were interned in Daxi, Taoyuan County, her hometown, earlier this month.
Ever considerate, Feng was adamant shortly before her passing that her attorney did not break the news of her death to the nation until the Chinese New Year holiday was long past. "Breaking such news during the New Year holidays will bring bad luck to others," she was quoted as saying.
President Ma said he was saddened by the death of the singer, whose performance of two songs wrapped up the 2008 Presidential Inauguration ceremonies, when he was sworn in for his first term, a presidential spokesman said.
The president called her son to offer his condolences immediately after learning of Feng Fei Fei's death, Fang-Chiang Tai-chi told reporters, adding "he sorely misses her."
Born Lin Chiu-luan to a family of modest means in Daxi on Aug 20, 1953, Feng Fei Fei began her singing career in 1968, when she won the championship in a television singing contest at the tender age of 15.
What followed was not a meteoric rise to stardom, but a life of privation for three long years, during which she tried to make every penny count and counted every penny of her income as an itinerant singer who sang at wedding and festival banquets.
"Sometimes, I had to switch buses several times before I reached the place, which was quite often in remote rural areas. And after the guests were gone, we were treated to a hastily reheated mixture of leftovers that we found so tasty," Feng Fei Fei told an interviewer.
Her first break came in 1971, when one of her songs was included on a compilation album. She joined a label and released her first album "Wishing You Well" the next year.

Her next major award came in 1974, when she went on a concert trip to Singapore, where she was crowned one of the "top ten Southeast Asian Singers."Better known on stage as the hat-wearing diva who never completely revealed her coiffured locks, Feng Fei Fei was known for her huge collection of headwear as well as her unflagging support for causes the nation held dear.A frequent performer at National Day celebrations and beneficiaries after her first trip to Kinmen in 1978, when she entertained troops stationed on the island, she donated both her time and money generously to charities. Baseball fans still recall the time when she put on the hat of a cheerleader and went to the United States to root for the junior national baseball team playing there. She was named a "patriotic entertainer" in 1981.She married in 1980 and her singing career continued until 2011, when she had to cancel a pre-scheduled concert because of the damage done to her vocal cords by cancerous cells.Fans rushed to CD stores today and bought up all stocks of her album in less than 12 hours.

Click on thumbnail to view (Photos: Hype Records, Internet, Wanbao)

Taipei, Feb. 14 (CNA) Fong Fei-fei, one of
Taiwan's most prominent pop divas in the 1970s and 1980s who enjoyed an enduring
following in much of Asia, died from lung cancer Jan. 3 in Hong Kong at the age
of 58, her family and lawyer announced at a news conference Monday.

The
belated announcement came a day after the pop queen's ashes were placed in a
Buddhist temple in her hometown of Dasi in Taoyuan County in northern Taiwan.

"We did not break news of her death earlier in line with her will," her
attorney Chiang Yen-wei said.

Noting that Fong Fei-fei, the stage name
of Lin Chiu-luan, was a fairly modest and low-profile person, Chiang said the
singer demanded that information of her death be withheld until after her
funeral was completed.

"Fong Fei-fei also asked me to convey her
heartfelt thanks for all the support her working partners and faithful fans had
offered her throughout her career and life," Chiang said.

Fong Fei-fei,
who started her legendary career by winning the first prize of a radio singing
contest in 1968 when she was still a junior high school student, was originally
scheduled to hold a concert at Taipei Arena last June.

While rehearsing
for that concert in May, she noticed abnormalties in her vocal cords, Chiang
said.

Medical examinations confirmed that the problems with her vocal
cords were caused by lung cancer, forcing her to decide to cancel her scheduled
concert, according to Chiang.

He further said Fong Fei-fei's health
condition deteriorated abruptly Jan. 1 and she died at a Hong Kong hospital two
days later.

A posting on the late singer's official website said Monday
that Fong Fei-fei had willed that her death be announced after the Lantern
Festival, which fell on Feb. 6 this year.

The posting also quoted Fong
Fei-fei, who attained a goddess-like status among her fans with her charming
voice and amiable manner, as saying that she had lived a happy and wonderful
life and would like to sing for her fans again in her next life.

"She
still personally wrote birthday cards and 2012 New Year cards for her friends
and loyal fans in the last month of her life," the posting said.

Fong
Fei-fei married a Hong Kong travel industry tycoon in 1980 at the age of 27. Her
husband died from lung adenocarcinoma in 2009. She is survived by a 23-year-old
son.

In her prime, Fong Fei-fei recorded songs for soundtracks of
romantic films adapted from novels of noted writer Chiung Yao. The popularity of
those films also helped take her career to new heights.

Music and film
critics said Fong Fei-fei's geniality and the plain lyrics and simple melodies
of those songs, which were easy to sing along with but whose vocal intensity was
difficult to copy, produced a unique mix of legendary virtuosity and
approachable reality.

Wen Tien-hsiang, a film critic, said Fong
Fei-fei's charm was not just for young female audiences but also male listeners.
According to him, some of the Chiung Yao film songs, sung in Fong Fei-fei's
somewhat masculine voice, actually portray the male protagonists' feelings, so
male listeners found great empathy in them.

Throughout her decades-long
career, Fong Fei-fei produced more than 80 albums and held numerous sold-out
concerts at home and abroad, particularly in countries with a large
Chinese-speaking population.

In addition to Mandarin songs, she also
sang many old Taiwanese songs and engaged in reviving the Taiwanese ballad
tradition. In 1992, she released her 78th album, "Wishing to Play the Same
Tune." Most of the songs on the album had long been forgotten until its release.

A versatile signer, Fong Fei-fei also sang new Taiwanese songs that
broke free from the typically slow and sad style of traditional Taiwanese
ballads. She once said "embracing the past is good, but embracing the present is
wonderful."